Department of Health

Infected Blood

Lord Prior of Brampton: Before 1991, thousands of patients contracted HIV, hepatitis C, or both viruses, from treatment with NHS-supplied blood or blood products. This is aptly described by many as one of the great tragedies of modern health care and on the 25 March 2015 the Prime Minister apologised on behalf of the government to all those that were infected. I would like to start by repeating this sentiment and state, on behalf of this Government, how sorry we are for what happened and for the distress caused to those affected and their families.   In March, Lord Penrose published the report of his public inquiry into infections acquired in Scotland. As infection occurred before devolution, this is of relevance for the Westminster Government. Lord Penrose scrutinised events over a period of nearly 18 years between 1974 and 1991. The Report, together with over 5,000 documents from the period 1970-85 which have already been published by Government provides a comprehensive picture of events and decisions made. We have also committed to releasing all additional documents from 1986-1995 late this summer.   Lord Penrose made one recommendation: to take all reasonable steps to offer a hepatitis C test to everyone [in Scotland] who had a blood transfusion before September 1991 and who has not been tested for hepatitis C. In England, guidance to GPs has been issued over the years by the Department of Health, the NHS, and other health organisations which recommend that a hepatitis C test should be offered to patients who received a blood transfusion in the UK before 1991 or were treated with blood products before 1986. This can currently be found on the NHS Choices website. In light of Lord Penrose’s recommendation, the Department will be acting to ensure that GPs are reminded of this duty.   The terms of reference of the Penrose Inquiry did not include financial support for those affected. However for some time we have been listening to the many concerns about the existing arrangements and have been considering how we might improve that support. Concerns have been raised by individuals that have been affected, MPs, and the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Haemophilia and Contaminated Blood, and include: the complex nature of the organisations, and the criteria for, and charitable nature of, some payments. I would therefore like to briefly acknowledge the work of all the MPs who have raised the profile of this tragedy. Most significantly, however, I would like to recognise the work of affected individuals, and their representatives, who have tirelessly campaigned for many years.   On the 25 March the Prime Minister also announced that £25 million would be allocated to ease transition to a reformed system of support for affected individuals. While no decisions have yet been made on how this money will be spent, I must emphasise that the money will not be used for administrative costs, but will be used appropriately to support any transitional arrangements once we have consulted on how a new scheme might be structured.   Transition to a reformed scheme remains a priority for this Government. Decisions on the overall DH budget from 2016-17 onwards will be determined as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.   While I understand that beneficiaries to the current schemes may be frustrated by this wait, this is an extremely complex and sensitive area and any reform plans must be carefully considered before a consultation can be launched.

Cap on Care Costs

Lord Prior of Brampton: In 2010 the previous Government asked Sir Andrew Dilnot to lead the Commission on Funding of Care and Support to make recommendations on how to achieve an affordable and sustainable funding system for care and support for all adults in England. The Commission recommended the creation of a cap system to protect people from the risk of very high care costs. This recommendation was accepted and plans put in place to implement from April 2016. This Government still accepts that recommendation and remains firmly committed to delivering this historic change. However, the proposals to cap care costs and create a supporting private insurance market were expected to add £6 billion to public sector spending over the next 5 years. A time of consolidation is not the right moment to be implementing expensive new commitments such as this, especially when there are no indications the private insurance market will develop as expected. Therefore in light of genuine concerns raised by stakeholders, we have taken the difficult decision to delay the introduction of the cap on care costs system until April 2020. This is not a decision that has been taken lightly. A letter from the Local Government Association, dated 1 July, was clear that we need to think carefully about all the options, including postponing new initiatives. I am attaching a copy of this letter and a response from the Minister of State for Care Services. This is therefore what we will do and further announcements will follow in due course. Furthermore, we will continue with other efforts to support social care, in particular through the Better Care Fund, which will drive the integration of social care and the NHS going forward. We have an ageing population, which is something to be celebrated, but it inevitably means there are more people who will need care and support and we must ensure that the system can respond. This is an issue that had been ignored by successive Governments for far too long and I remain proud that we are taking on this thorny issue and setting out clear plans to address it. Vital steps have already been taken to improve the care and support landscape. The first phase of the care and support reforms enshrined in the Care Act came into force in April this year, introducing the biggest reforms to care and support in over 65 years. For the first time ever, we have a single, modern legal framework for care and support that places the person and their health and wellbeing at its heart. There are now national eligibility criteria for care and support across England. Carers now have the right to support to meet their needs. And deferred payment agreements are available across England ensuring that people should not be forced to sell their home in order to pay for their care in their lifetime. The introduction of the cap on care costs system will be the biggest reform to how care is paid for since 1948 and we must ensure that the new system works from day one. Local authorities and partners have consistently warned us of the risks of implementing this too quickly. We will therefore not be complacent, but work hard to use this additional time to ensure that everyone is ready to introduce the new system and that people can understand what it will mean for them. This includes taking the time to take stock on some of the other elements of the care and support reforms that are intended to support the cap system. I am able to confirm that we will delay the full introduction of the duty under Section 18(3) of the Care Act on local authorities to meet the eligible needs of self-funders in care homes to April 2020 to allow more time to be taken to consider the potential impact on the market and the interaction with the cap on care costs system. I can also confirm that the proposed appeals system for care and support will now be considered as part of the wider Spending Review. Further announcements will follow in due course. We will also look at what more we can do to support people with the costs of care. The new pension flexibilities introduced in April create a real opportunity for us to continue to work with the financial sector to look at what other products may be created to help people meet the costs of care, creating even more choice and enabling people to better plan and prepare for later life. To this end I will be holding an urgent meeting with representatives from the insurance industry along with HM Treasury and other Government Ministers to work through what this announcement means for them and how Government can help them to bring forward new products. These discussions will continue over the summer. 



Letter to Izzie Seccombe
(PDF Document, 78.54 KB)




Letter to Secretary of State for Health
(PDF Document, 129.45 KB)

Cabinet Office

Freedom of Information

Lord Bridges of Headley: We are committed to being the most transparent Government in the world.To deliver that goal we are opening up government to citizens by making it easier to access information and increase the volume available, with a record 20,000 datasets now on data.gov.uk, while protecting a private space for frank advice. We are strengthening accountability and making public services work better for people. The World Wide Web Foundation’s Open Data Barometer and Open Knowledge’s Global Open Data Index ranked the UK as the world’s leading country on open government.We are proud of these achievements and are committed to going further. Our next Open Government National Action Plan will develop an offer on transparency that further strengthens this Government’s commitment to open government.Our aim is to be as open as possible on the substance, consistent with ensuring that a private space is protected for frank advice. To that end as a government we must maintain the best environment for policy-makers to think freely and offer frank advice to decision-makers. The most effective system is when policy makers can freely give advice, whilst citizens can shine a light into government.We fully support the Freedom of Information Act but after more than a decade in operation it is time that the process is reviewed, to make sure it’s working effectively. The Government has therefore today established an independent, cross-party Commission on Freedom of Information. The Commission’s terms of reference are as follows:“The Commission will review the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (‘the Act’) to consider whether there is an appropriate public interest balance between transparency, accountability and the need for sensitive information to have robust protection, and whether the operation of the Act adequately recognises the need for a “safe space” for policy development and implementation and frank advice. The Commission may also consider the balance between the need to maintain public access to information, and the burden of the Act on public authorities, and whether change is needed to moderate that while maintaining public access to information.”The Commission will be chaired by Lord Burns, and will comprise the Rt Hon Jack Straw, Lord Howard of Lympne, Lord Carlile of Berriew and Dame Patricia Hodgson.The Commission will report to the Minister for the Cabinet Office and will publish its findings by the end of November.The Prime Minister has also confirmed that policy responsibility for Freedom of Information policy will transfer from the Ministry of Justice to the Cabinet Office. This change will be effective from 17 July 2015.

HM Treasury

Supply and Appropriation (Main Estimates) Bill

Lord Ashton of Hyde: I have made a statement under Section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998 that, in my view, the provisions of the Supply and Appropriation (Main Estimate) Bill are compatible with the convention rights. A copy of the statement has been placed in the Library of the House. 



ECHR certificate
(PDF Document, 27.12 KB)